Learning4Content/Workshops/Face-to-Face schedule/L4C26/quality

A debate on Openness -the pros and cons of Wikis

Open is fine - but the tools are still archaic... who wants to learn those?

I think the concept of openess in the context of WikiEducator, open content, open/free software is phenomenal. It is the future for all of us......User:Maggy

I think that the wikieducator could be useful in the training of future educators in Namibia .... User:Zurfer_boy

For me it is another learning experience and a tool to use more often in future...User:swaerwynand

Open Education Resources on community websites such as Wikieducator is one way of answering the increase demand for education ...User:miems

Zurfer_boy i think it will depend on the buy in of educators.... User:theo

Zurfer_boy - I agree but it will not only benefit educators but also learners ...User:miems

Only if we can convince the educators of the worth of wiki miems ....User:Zurfer_boy

Well, I would say given the background of Namibia's ICT policy and the ICT competence levels required of teachers to enable them to use ICT in their teaching, I believe that Wikieducator can be a very useful tool in giving teacher educators and students alike the opportunity to practice online learning and web-based learning material development skills. What is important is for all users to be made well aware of the limitations inherent in the openess of materials and resources available on Wikieducator and on other Wikis so that they can learn how to compensate for it... User:Shili

This is a new thing for me, but I do think open content can benefit Africa, especially, in terms of eliminating barriers to access of knowledge, thereby, ensuring equal access to knowledge as well as the impact it may have on the achievement of the MDGs. Just think, my fellow wikiAfricans, Wikieducator can enable Africans to become producers of knowledge, instead of consumers of knowledge from the West. But as with any novelty, we only focus on the pros. What are the cons? Shili, I would like to learn more about the "limitations inherent in the openness of materials". Any ideas?User:sonja5

The inherent weakness I referred to are the obvious ones: my understanding is that the openess means anyone can edit the materials posted, which makes content vulnerable to vandalism. Consequently it would also be difficult for academic institutions to recognise references using Wiki due to this weakness. Another problem I see is for the recognition of materials one may create on Wiki by authorities like NQA for example. I would like to refer my students to resources on Wiki. Would NQA recognise my course though, if materials used within the course may be vulnerable as I have stated earlier? What do you think? User:Shili